How To Fight And Treat Severe Degenerative Joint Disease

Patients diagnosed with severe degenerative joint disease suffers from severe pain whenever they try to move each muscle of their body. Severe cases of the degenerative joint disease have been known to hinder patients mobility and also render them useless, being unable to complete a simple task like holding a cup of tea. The major parts of the body that is affected by this disease are the joint and cartilages. Inflammation occurs in this area, which results in pain that is severe.

If well attended to and treated early, this degenerative joint disease can be managed to prevent it from developing to the severe case of the disease. Often times than not, people that have detected this disease earlier and took actions immediately have been able to go back to their normal physical fitness and enjoy a bit of the physical activities they use to enjoy when they were healthy. You can also do the same if you take the right steps now.

The General Physiology Of Joints And Cartilages

Joints serve as the major point connecting one bone to another in the human body. They are located at the extreme end of each bone and are surrounded by cartilages which serve as cushions. The primary function of cartilages is to prevent both the bones and the joints from wearing off due to constant grinding on each other. On the other hand, joints make movement easier and it also provides adequate balance to the musculoskeletal system of the body as a whole.

Being the fulcrum and also the major point of articulation in the body, joints withstand so much weight exerted on them by the body. Due to this fact, they are usually under strain and they get injured quickly than any other part in the body. Most importantly, they deteriorate with time.

Also known as osteoarthritis, degenerative joint disease is majorly a disease often attributed with old age. It is known to affect one-third of people that sixty-five years and above. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease that causes inflammation in the joint and also to deteriorate the cartilages that surround the joint which acts as shock absorber.

If adequate treatment measures are not put into place at the early stage of development, this disease will become worse and it will affect the major joints in the body that plays important role in mobility. These joints include the spines, hips, knees, and hands. But this can be controlled by early diagnosis and introducing different types of treatment measures. These treatments help to mitigate the symptoms or even make them disappear completely.

Causes Of Osteoarthritis

Old age, tear, and wear of the joint and cartilages are the major causes of Osteoarthritis. Although it could also be as a result of some physical activities that are quite strenuous. These include frequent lifting of objects that are heavy, accidents and body movements that are quite strenuous. Workers that are fully involved in manual labor are most likely to develop this disease with time.

Based on scientific estimate that was carried out, it was discovered that women are more susceptible to degenerative joint disease when compared to men. This makes a fraction to assume that the hormones found in women are another causative factors.

Osteoarthritis could also develop as a result of an accident which has to do with a forceful impact that is unexpected. The injury is not the primary cause here, but the trauma felt during the accident. This usually develops gradually as the patient grows older.

Common Signs And Symptoms Of Osteoarthritis

In most cases, Osteoarthritis cannot be diagnosed until the patient begins to feel the pain and other symptoms begin to develop gradually, which will push the patient to run to a physician for help.

Symptoms:

Swelling of the affected joint

Patients will find it difficult to stand

Severe pain when seated

The affected part will become reddened

When the patient remains in a particular spot for a long period of time without doing anything, the affected part becomes stiff.

The patients’ mobility changes

The patient will begin to experience slight pain when doing some simple task like cleaning the dishes or dressing up.

Patient experiences an unpleasant and harsh sensation when trying to move a joint.

Osteoarthritis disease opens the door for other diseases that are quite related physiologically. These diseases include herniated discs, spinal fractures, and stenosis. When this condition becomes more severe, the patient will begin to experience symptoms like back pain, fatigue, and muscular weaknesses. Early detection is the only way to prevent this disease from emanating to the severe stage and that is why it is very important.

TREATMENTS OF SEVERE DEGENERATE JOINT DISEASE

Before any other thing can take place, diagnosis must be carried out first. To diagnose degenerative joint diseases, either x-rays or CT scan will be carried out. In complicated cases, your physician might recommend an MRI. In some cases, your physician might also decide to do some blood test and also analyze the level of your joint fluids to precisely state the severity of osteoarthritis condition. Whatever information that is extracted from this results, your physician will be able to formulate a treatment plan for you.

Traditionally, what doctors do is that they try out all treatment options available before recommending the use of surgery to make corrections. Treatment nearest that can be used to control and reduce the symptoms of osteoarthritis are numerous, all they just have to do is find the perfect one to use. In most cases, the results of the test carried out helps to point out the best treatment approach. If the right treatment is introduced early, the negative effects of this disease can be alleviated.

Physical Therapy and Exercise

The use of physical therapy and exercise is one of the oldest methods, at the same time one of the most effective methods of treating degenerative joint disease. This treatment involves losing body weight and also to fortify the muscles of the affected area to help combat the stress that has accumulated around the joints and cartilages. Physical therapy and exercise will significantly reduce the pain and increase mobility in both men and woman suffering from osteoarthritis.

The Use Of Assisted Walking Devices

The last thing you want to do is to sit in a wheelchair. If you actually do, you are ignorantly condemning yourself on that wheelchair for a long period of time. Sitting on a wheelchair will worsen your pain and your muscles will also stiffen, which means you will be unable to walk. But with an assisted walking device, you will be able to get back on your feet in no time, because it will help you strengthen the muscles in the affected part of your body. Assisted walking devices include canes, crutches, and walkers. What they do is that they help increase your mobility and increases joint fluid circulation.

Use Of Medication

Before a physician prescribes medications to help reduce the pain of osteoarthritis, he or she must have tried quite a number of other treatment option. Nevertheless, the use of medication such as anti-inflammatory drugs and cortisone injection is very helpful and it helps reduce the pain and combat the inflammations.

Dietary Change

There are certain types of food that help ameliorate the lubrication of joints and also help combat the inflammation in the joints. Eating this specific types of food will help improve lubrication and fight the inflammation.